ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, February 4, 1996 TAG: 9602050002
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-18 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: RADFORD
SOURCE: KRISTEN KAMMERER STAFF WRITER
Outside a red, barn-like workshop in Radford, a dozen or so giants lie on their sides, peacefully slumbering under soft pillows of snow. A shiny, black grackle flaps its wings and lands on one giant's head. The bird aims a cockeyed stare at its huge perch, then lets out a puzzled squawk and flies off in a tizzy. His befuddlement is understandable.
Birds don't usually encounter these giants on the ground, but in the sky. Familiar to all of us, though rarely seen at eye level, they are the steeples that adorn the tops of churches. For now, however, these few remain earthbound. Cracked, rusted and worn by years of exposure, they are waiting for the skilled and loving hands of Bernie Wojciechowski to restore them to their full majesty.
Four years ago, Wojciechowski (pronounced, Voy che HOW ski) started MULTISERV General Contractors, a company that specializes in church restoration, particularly steeple and baptistry refurbishing and installation.
Its services run from leak repair to custom design and manufacture. "Whatever a church wants, we'll do it," Wojciechowski says, adding that the company's name, MULTISERV, means "any and all kinds of service."
Locally, you can see their work in the refurbished steeple on the First Baptist Church of Pearisburg and several churches in Richmond. Much of their work, however, comes from customers outside Virginia. To date, they have restored churches in North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
Business is booming.
"More and more people are hearing about us and our reputation is spreading," Wojciechowski says. "This last year we installed over 50 steeples and had around six major refurbishing jobs. Our workload has grown every year and ... I'm really excited to see what happens in '96."
Before answering this "higher calling," Wojciechowski spent 15 years as a Virginia state trooper and part-time general contractor. His cool composure and level stare would be familiar to anyone who's ever been caught doing 45 mph in a 25 mph zone.
Though devoted to police work, Wojciechowski did not always care for certain aspects of the job, especially handing out speeding tickets. "I knew there were reasons behind things like tickets, but I never felt entirely happy with my job," he says. "I kept thinking there must be more to life."
Eventually Wojciechowski retired from law enforcement and dabbled in various business ventures. Nothing seemed to click. A few years later, a friend who sold church furniture recommended him to a parish looking for someone to install its church's steeple. Wojciechowski took the job and everything changed. "It felt like I'd been given a mission," he says, his poker-face melting into an appealing grin. "It was like the Lord was telling me what I had to do. And when the Lord tells me to do something, I do it!"
Recognizing the need among parishes for someone to repair their aging churches, Wojciechowski began advertising his services by word-of-mouth. He took every referral and piece of advice that came his way. Gradually, the business grew. "At first it was just a family effort, myself and my three boys, B.J., Christopher and Kenny Wayne. But we kept pushing more and more until it grew into what you see here today," he said, referring to his busy workshop and his staff of five, counting himself.
Walking inside Wojciechowski's workshop is a little like taking a stroll along the rooftops with Mary Poppins. Gigantic cupolas, spires, and steeple bases loom on all sides. The structures stand from 10 to 60 feet tall and weigh up to 2,500 pounds. Some are crowned with crosses, others with decorative spires. Spotlights shine directly onto the steeples so that every inch of surface is illuminated. The smells of paint, sealant and elbow grease rise with the heat being thrown by an industrial heater set on "high." The steeples dwarf the men who are milling around them with drills, saws, sanding machines and paint brushes.
Having arrived around 7:30 in the morning, the crew is hard at work to complete a backlog of orders created, in part, by the recent blizzard. With so many jobs going at once, the crew is putting in long hours, taking breaks "only when necessary," and often working well into the night.
When a parish contacts MULTISERV about a job, the first order of business is a structural survey. In the case of a steeple refurbishing, Wojciechowski first assesses its condition. Based on his assessment and the size of the job, a price is set.
The cost usually ranges from $2,000 to $30,000. Wojciechowski says his prices are often considerably lower than those charged by general contractors who do not even specialize in church restoration. "I think a lot of it has to do with that fact that [the parishes] often don't know who to call for this type of work," he says.
When a contract is signed to repair a steeple, an extensive system of scaffolding goes up. "We never scrimp on the scaffolding," Wojciechowski says. "None of us are afraid of heights, but we're careful not to take any unnecessary risks."
The steeple is then entirely disconnected from the church, removed with a crane and transported to the shop by truck and trailer.
Then the transformation begins.
Most modern steeples are constructed of fiberglass, unlike their elder counterparts, which were built of metal or wood. To refurbish an aging steeple, Wojciechowski makes molds of its original parts and casts identical pieces out of fiberglass. The parts are then reconstructed, bonded and sealed, using materials similar to those applied in refinishing a car's. The result is a lighter, water resistant, and more durable steeple. Wojciechowski says that fiberglass has a "phenomenal life expectancy," and fully expects his steeples to last a lot longer than the 10 years for which he guarantees them.
The final step is resetting, bolting and sealing the new steeple back on the church. It's an exciting time, not just for Wojciechowski but for the whole parish. "People usually gather when we're putting one of these up ... and they always jump right in to lend a hand."
It's clear that what Wojciechowski loves about his new line of work is not only the craftsmanship, but the people. "I meet some of the nicest folks doing this. We can be working up on top of a church until the wee hours of the morning and someone will come by the church to pray. That kind of thing gets to me. It's truly an honor to put up steeples for these people."
Occasionally, Wojciechowski has to rely on more than just his crew and the parishioners' goodwill. Sometimes it takes a miracle.
He recalls a job in North Carolina. They had just put up the scaffolding and were removing the steeple when someone told them a hurricane was on its way. "It would have been a disaster," he remembers. "So I just said, 'Lord, I sure would like it if you could hold that storm off for a bit.' And the next thing I hear, the storm had stalled out on the coast!"
Then there was the time they went to remove a steeple only to find the cross packed with hornets' nests. "I asked the Lord if he would do something about the bees and by the next morning they were gone. Later, when we finished the job, we looked up at the steeple and there were the bees swarming around. They'd all come back!"
Miracles or not, when the work is done, the scaffolding comes down and the parishioners get the first glimpse of their new steeple.
Pastor Michael Bratton of the First Baptist Church of Pearisburg remembers the unveiling of his church's refurbished steeple. "It looked absolutely remarkable," he says. "[Wojciechowski] made some changes to the original and really enhanced the look of it. My parish is very well pleased. When people look up and see that [steeple], they'll know they can find God here."
Such genuine appreciation for his work is something Wojciechowski rarely received as a trooper. And it is this he relishes most of all.
"I love what I do now," he says. "I can honestly say I've never been happier."
LENGTH: Long : 143 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY/Staff. 1. Mike Sharp applies tape andby CNBnewspaper to window on a church steeple in preparation for its
refurbishing. ran on NRV-1). 2. Mike Sharp applies tape and
newspaper to a window on a church steeple in preparation for its
refurbishing. Sharp works at MULTISERV General Contractors, a
company specializing in the restoration of church steeples, in
Montgomery County. 3. Inside MULTISERV General Contractors, the
smells of paint and sealant mixed with elbow grease rise with the
heat being thrown by an industrial heater. color.